In order to describe the circulation of this particular building, we first need to understand a little of its history. The Salt Lake City Public Library was originally housed in the Salt Lake City and County Building in 1898. Thanks to a donation of land and money by a John Quackenbos Packard in 1905, a new library was built. This library remained in use until it outgrew the building in the early 1960s. The city library was then moved to a new home across from the City and County Building. After celebrating the library's 100th anniversary in early 1998, the budget for a new library was approved, giving birth to the current library we are studying.

The horizontal circulation of the building starts outside. The famous library square, is a open space that gives air to the building and gives the spectators the necessary distance to comfortably admire the building. People can walk around the building. Then there's a large walkway with a semicircular shape that slowly ascends to the top of the building, distributes people to each of the floors in the building and ends in the rooftop garden. Inside the building, the horizontal circulation is started by a triple height space that connects with the main building a makes pedestrians to walk from the beginning to the end of the building and then back, following the arcuate glass wall that provides the entire building with light.

The vertical circulation is far more simple or formal than the horizontal one. A beautiful curved stairway ascends in one side of the building to the top and three glass elevators that show every detail of the building in the movement.

This library is a fine example of modern architecture. Combines both architectural and landscaping spaces, and makes it a very accurate place for its actual use, a place to read, not mentioning the wise use of environmental resources. What a beautiful building.

Recording



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